The Court of Appeal in Abuja on Monday upheld Bashir Sheriff Machina as the All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate for Yobe North Senatorial District.
The court affirmed the judgement of the Federal High Court in Damaturu, Yobe State, which rejected the President of the Senate, Ahmad Lawan, as APC candidate in 2023 National Assembly election for Yobe North Senatorial District.
A three-member panel of the Appeal Court led by justice Monica Dongban-Mensem, in a judgment on the appeal filed by the President of the Senate, held that the primary election conducted by the party on June 9 is invalid as it was in breach of the constitution.
The maintained that the law is settled as to the involvement of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in party primaries, which is to monitor, the primaries of 9th June were not monitored by the electoral commission. The judges declared that the appeal is unmeritorious as it fails in its entirety.
The court ordered the APC to pay the sum of N1 million to the 1st respondent (Bashir Sheriff) as cost.